The calm of Twixmas

 

The week between Christmas and the New Year is an odd one; the frenetic pace of preparing for Christmas is replaced by a pause, a calm, a time to breathe again. The busyness of buying & preparing food, gifts, guest rooms is over without the reset needing to be done immediately. 

Preparing the magic for everyone else needs time to reset, for relative stillness when time is suspended, nothing is urgent. 

This strange week is when we lose track of time, of hours & days, when things muddle along with no urgency to do anything in particular. 

I find this quiet time peaceful - the house still has its festive touches, they will be gone after the year changes &  before twelfth night as is traditional. 

There is random food everywhere - stollen, mince pies, Christmas cake, assorted cheeses & crackers. All the things associated with the festive season & that always seems to have some left.

A woodland walk is a good idea to blow away the cobwebs while getting some fresh air. We are lucky to have some good ones locally. 

This pause in the year is a great reset time.  Doing nothing in particular is useful to take stock of life, of home, of tasks. They can be done or not, there is no urgency to focus; the earth is resting & so should we. The next year will soon bring a to-do rush with it,  but not just yet, it can wait. 

I hope you are resetting your year at Twixmas.

Thank you for stopping by & visiting, it is appreciated.

Dee 🪵🌳🦌🎄

Festive sausage rolls are ready ...

 

Amidst the busyness it is good to do some of the prep ahead of time. 

I think nibbles are good but something a little heartier goes down well because it is more substantial & not sweet. 

I rather like home made sausage rolls with a festive filling. I have bought in extra ready made puff & shortcrust pastry ready for a quick bake if needed. I tend to do a festive plait on Boxing day & always use ready made puff pastry. 

I bought in pork stuffing to use. The first was pork, apple & cranberries that I spiced up with salt, pepper, garlic & a little sweet paprika. The second stuffing was pork, cranberry & orange so I added some orange zest & a squeeze of fresh orange to this mixture to be made up the same as the other. 

I cut the length of rolled pastry longways - spread a thin layer of bought cranberry sauce down the middle of each half, brushed the edges all round with just water (you can use egg but I find water seals it just fine.  

The spiced sausage meat was halved, then rolled in to a long sausage shape for each side. I used my hands to just nudge it in to the right shape. 

The pastry is rolled over the sausage meat, tucking it in under the filling, then rolling the whole shape over with the rolled part underneath to give a neat shape. 

Each half was then cut in half,  then in to quarters to make 8 in each side - 16 from one roll of pastry. I did 2 lots so have 32 sausage rolls ready to bake when needed. 

The ones with the pork, orange & cranberries had the tops just snipped with a scissors so I know which are which. 

These were open frozen overnight on a baking sheet so they are ready & can be cooked from frozen after being glazed with an egg / milk mixture. 

Bake at 200c for about 20 min. 

Most of us like a savoury treat so these are perfect, served with some chutneys or a dip even.

I hope you find some time to do some baking ahead of the time. Thank you for stopping by & visiting with me. I appreciate every comment, like or share. 

Dee 🎄🧈🧑‍🍳

The last Sunday of Advent brings PEACE

 … and just like that, the fourth candle is lit on the Advent ring, all four candles burning together & a reminder that there is little time to Christmas. 

The four candles are for:

                      HOPE, LOVE, JOY, PEACE

I have a central candle to burn on Christmas morning with our breakfast when we are together.

These candles have provided quiet, reflective moments each week, the passing of time reminds one of the empty chairs & thankfulness for those with us. 

 Have a blessed last Sunday of Advent. 

I hope you find some quiet, peaceful time amidst your day.

Thank you for stopping by, reading, commenting or sharing. It is appreciated 

Dee 🎄🕯️⛪️

Marking the Winter Solstice

 

Our days are much shorter with dawn coming later & night coming earlier. 

It is the time to 'nest' when you can, to take stock as the year winds down to Christmas. 

I like to bring in fresh greenery in to the home - fir, holly, ivy, pine cones & my garland is up on the front door to welcome in visitors too. 

I went in to the woods last weekend to forage & came out with a handful of gorgeous fallen branches. 

I have tied them up in to a swag & put them on the patio chimnea that faces the house so they can be seen from the windows. 

The taller branches are in the funnel of the chimnea, along with the autumn ones I picked up some weeks before from the same woods. 

They are a visual link to nature & my love of forests & woods. 

There is something very therapeutic about spending time in woods or forests, the smell of pines, of gentle sounds of nature & being able to pick up some branches - it is an important connection. 

The Winter Solstice marks the shortest day & the longest night of the year, when darkness abounds & the light will slowly start to return again.  

This is how I have marked the Winter Solstice previously 

This time is also known as Yule, or Modranight (Mother Night), or Midwinter - it is the gentle pause in the seasons.

Norse & some Anglo Saxon cultures celebrate the influence of Mothers on this night, their wisdom & lineage remembered, their stories told so they are not forgotten. It is a lovely tradition. 

This is some of my female ancestors who had a big influence on my life. I am so fortunate to have several generational photos of my maternal line ... 

I like to do a simmer pot of winter scents at Solstice to fill the home with fresh fragrance & light candles to mark the return of the light. A dark cycle completing ... 

These are the herbs associated with the Winter Solstice. 

 I look forward to the light slowly returning but I also love the dark nights when homes are lit by gentle lights over the festive season. 

Thank you for stopping by & visiting with me, 

Dee 🕯️🌲🍁🪾🔥

Festive tartan trends ...

 

We have tartan curtains in our dining-room at home that I won a few years ago after commenting on a magazine photo online. 

I had forgotten about it at the time until this package arrived unexpectedly & beautiful heather coloured tartan curtains were unpackaged. I was absolutely delighted with the pure wool curtains & they are hung in the dining-room each winter, I swap them out for lighter curtains in summer. 

Apparently, tartan is trending according to my students & Country Living magazine. 

Just as well because our large conservatory table has a tartan tablecloth (from IKEA about 15 years ago). It is the right length for the long table & the colours are very festive so it appears regularly.  

I have a 2 seater cane bench at the bottom of the table & that is a comfortable seating arrangement. That has a tartan fabric throw on it in reds - the fabric was bought ages ago & it is just perfect next to the table cloth. 

I have another one that is more reds & golds that goes on the shorter table in the dining-room too, along with other plaid / tartan bits. 

Our home has lots of traditional elements, some dark furniture, along with modern things so it is eclectic decor that reflects our style not to stick to a trend. I consider it timeless, comfortable spaces you want to relax in. 

I bought warm bedding from Dunelm for the guest beds in tartan that looks very welcoming & warm. I was told it is right on Ralph Lauren trend by my students. I indulged them & they went off to buy some too; the thought of being a trend setter for the students is a novel idea. 

However, warmth is comfort in winter so that was my motivation.  

Winter needs warmth & comfort & these brushed cotton tartan sets offers that. Are you inspired by tartan elements in the home & which colours are your favourite?

Thank you for stopping by, it is appreciated, 

Dee 🕯️🏰 🛌 😴

The JOYful third Sunday of Advent ...

I love how the four candles of Advent quietly mark the approach of Christmas. Each candle a reminder that preparations are needed to make the festive season run smoothly. It is also a reminder of the  reason for the season, something that is forgotten in the commercial rush. 

The JOY candle joins the first two of HOPE & LOVE, a reminder to spread positive messages in your wake because many people do not look forward to the festive season for various reasons. 

I often join friends or host friends for supper before Christmas when we are all spread out. Celebrating the JOY of friendships, fellowships & support. We treasure our time together before returning to our own family time.

The JOY candle is a reminder to find Joy this week. 

It is also a timely reminder for quiet time, for stillness when the pressures get loud for more & more. 

I like to take time away to enjoy the traditional elements. 

Yesterday I took a woodland walk, to breathe in the pine scented air, to pick up some fallen branches ahead of the winter solstice in a few days. It brings to mind to carol of The Holly & the Ivy - a reminder that our ancestors were connected to the seasons & their observances of bringing in greenery, of holly used in modest homes as decoration & symbolism of renewed life, of  yule logs kept burning or lit from a central one. These were important observances that gave hope in mid winter. 

JOY in stepping away & appreciating simpler times. 

Thank you for stopping by & visiting, it is appreciated

Dee 🌲 🌳🍂🪾

The glistening beaded ornaments are up ...

Hand beading is a traditional skill in Southern Africa, unique items that are not mass made in a factory across the world is always something to be admired. 

I have shared my hand beaded wire & bead proteas that I have at home. 

I first saw the beaded proteas in a magazine then later visited a market with my late Dad & we chose these together for my home in England. 

Almost 2 decades ago, a friend was selling some of the hand beaded ornaments from Natal in her shop in Shropshire & I bought some. 

My parents added to the collection,  & each time we have been back, we have bought some additional ones. They are a link to my heritage. 

This past week, the little tree that usually goes in the conservatory was repurposed on the dining room sideboard. 

It looks right with the small beaded ornaments & I pass it several times a day so enjoy looking at it. 

I  put the beaded ornaments on there, along side the random deer who come out over the festive season. 

The  deer are mainly supermarket ones - Sainsbury's - some years back & they are really sweet. 

The little tree with its beaded ornaments is unique; it is personal & it is very much enjoyed. 

I hope your festive planning is going well too. Thank you for stopping by & spending time here. 

Dee 🕯️🎄🎶🔔

The second Sunday of Advent brings LOVE

 It is a grounding time to light the Advent candles at home on a Sunday & to just have time to pause amidst the rush of December. Everyone you speak to has lists & things to do so a calm time is reflective. 

The second candle is for LOVE - love for life, for people, kindness to strangers, just a softer way of life.

LOVE can take many forms; the friends who text you a link to a post they know you will enjoy,  a cup of tea when you need it, a note to say 'thought of you', the shopkeeper asking how you are, the coffee shop knowing what you like, a morning text before you all go on your busy ways ... 

The second candle of LOVE joins the first candle of HOPE as they burn together for a while.

Spread ripples of love & kindness, 

Dee ⛪️🕯️🎶🔔

The Advent candles need a bobeche ...

 I love candles at home, especially with meals for friends etc when we chat late in to the night & the candles burn low & no one wants to move. 

However, so many candles seem to drip wax that runs down the candlestick & on to the tablecloth where it almost impossible to remove. 

Some of my candle holders have glass wax catchers / bobeche that gets around this problem but many do not. The Advent ring, although brass, is prone to having the candles drip so I had a thought to get around this issue. 

The idea comes from my teaching time when students would make Christingles & carry them to a local church for the service. They were lit when they got to church & to stop the hot wax dripping on them, a paper round was used to catch the wax. 

While out dropping off surplus Christmas things at local charity shops (yes, I am still on a mission to reduce my Christmas stash) I spied some sheet music & had an inspiring thought. It would be easy & pretty to make paper wax catchers from sheet music. 

I duly purchased 3 lots at 20p each; a perfect find. 

I used a glass to draw a circle for each one - 4 for the Advent wreath & one for the centre candle. 

After cutting out the circles, I made 6-8 small snips to the centre large enough for the candle to go through. 

I did a gold border on each circle with a sharpie pen before easing it over the candles so it rests on the candle holder. 

They look pretty as well as being functional & that is a great way to protect the table cloths from drips. 

I hope this inspires you to do something similar - it is a quick but satisfying make that only took a few minutes. You could use pretty Christmas cards to do this too. 

Thank you for stopping by at this busy time, it is always appreciated. 

Dee 🕯️📖🎵🎶

Looking more festive …

 

 

A message on the local ‘kindness’ group last week spurred me into action: Decorations needed for a local care home looking after dementia residents. 

I have had it on my mind to declutter sort through the accumulation of years of Christmas decorations & this was the nudge I needed ahead of doing my own tree. 

I have kept the last few years ones in the garage but in previous years the packed boxes went in the loft. Out of sight but also not easy to access in midwinter when it is really cold up there. When the girls were at uni or working away, it was easier to grab new decorations rather than haul boxes down the ladder from the loft so the things that went up didn’t always come down. 

However, the wanted / needed request spurred us to bring down the loft decorations. We put them in the hallway & I checked in what was needed. ‘Wreaths, garlands, decorations, anything’ was the reply & so I checked through the containers, taking out just a few bits, then they were collected for the care home. 

What a relief to have sorted it out & so relieved that they were going to a good home. 

The conservatory sideboard was changed as the family were stopping by & Advent Sunday was upon us. Old favourites that will be well used over the festive season, many of them gifts over the years & they are on hand to enjoy a mince pie or treat on a nice plate without digging around for them. The sideboard works well for us at home. 

A really wet day today nudged me to bring the tree in from the garage & do the living room tree. I decided that white, rose & old gold decoration combination will prevail again. 

I tested the lights (we have all had the failed light experience) wound them on then set to decorate while catching up on recorded programmes. 

Some additional ones had come down with the loft stash like the ‘peace, joy, Noel’ ones & some delicate angels. The tree nestles in the corner next to the clocks & is a joy in the dark nights.

Our inglenook fireplace gets a large garland that only just stretches between the 2 hooks. 

It had graced the smaller fireplace at previous house where it draped over it but it is fortunately just right here. 

Lights adjusted & plugged in, it’s twinkly lights matching that of the tree. 

Baking is part of my Christmas preparations. 

 I like to put out some of the cookie cutters on the windowsill, alongside the glass candleholders; the plug in lights that stay up all year round are especially pretty in the winter when the candle holders come from various corners of the house to rest on the window sill. 

It is very handy to have candles readily available for when they are needed or when you want to  have one burning while you cook. 

I love passing on the joy of making something imperfect for the festive season. 

I am not yet sure what the festive baking will be - I looked at the long list of ingredients on some of the mince pies & they put me off. 

I know commercial baking is different but I prefer something without all the additives. 

I think mince pies will be on my baking list - any good suggestions are welcome. 

Still things to do about the house ahead of the festive season but I enjoy preparing the space, as my parents did for us growing up. 

Do you also like to take your time with festive preparations so you can enjoy them & the cosy feel at home? 

With various meet ups with friends at local pubs & coffee shops ahead of Christmas, I feel more organised with the major things done. 

What is your strategy for the festive season? When do you get started? Thank you for stopping by, it is always appreciated, 

Dee 🎄⛪️🕯️

The first Sunday of Advent slips in quietly as HOPE

Some things arrive quietly, almost unnoticed but not insignificant.  Advent is one such thing, a reminder that we have but 4 Sundays to Christmas.

For many, the frenetic season of excess is in full swing but Advent brings a reminder to just pause, take stock & remind yourself that commercialism can be sidestepped, it is optional. 

I struggle with the excesses of the season, the idea that more is more in everything from gifts to food. 

I am from a generation where life was simpler in Africa; slower, no 24 hour shops or round the clock tv.  That is how I like the season - authentic, simpler but still meaningful. 

I grew up attending Sunday school & church, singing in the choir. I know all the words & the rituals that ground me & consider myself spiritual. It is very personal, I find my peace in quiet places & in still Abbey ruins locally. 

However, I do return to carols & observing rituals at Christmas, it anchors one in the collective observances. 

My Mothers paternal grandfather was German / Prussian & she instinctively observed some of the traditions from her Father who still carried some of the Teutonic ways of his ancestors. 

My Mother used to travel across Johannesburg to a specialist deli shop to purchase Advent calendars for my daughters long before they were mainstream. 

These were imported but she loved this ritual of giving them to the girls & enjoying their pleasure in opening the windows that all had religious symbols on them. 

Years ago, I bought fabric 'East of India' ones that I filled with small chocolates I purchased for the daughters; the little pockets means you have to be mindful of what will fit in. It was always the start of the season for me, the calendars filled & delivered to university residences & homes where the daughters were.

These fabric calendars were filled & passed to the grandchildren this weekend ahead of Advent. 

It is more personal selecting chocolates to fill each year than just a shop bought one. 

Today, I added greenery to my Advent ring from our garden, a few sprigs of holly from our little bush, some ivy & the starlike flower stems from the fatsia japonica. 

The first of the 4 candles will be lit as the sun fades today. Each week it will join the next until they all burn on the last Sunday. I have opted for creamy white & gold candles this year.

                     The first candle is for HOPE 

Today, pause & take stock of how you want the festive season to be & don't forget to add in some thankfulness too. 

Thank you for stopping by, it is always appreciated 

Dee 🕯️🎄✝️⛪️

Some festive sewing at last ...

 It is almost December, the last of our 'ber' months & the pace of things is picking up. You know how things suddenly speed up, the lists & jobs stack up quickly?  

I do love to do some hand sewn things to go with friends cards or something for my home. 

This was beaded Christmas trees I did previously, some very blingy, some plainer for little fingers. 

Last years ones were lovely too & I also did some little Christmas stockings to pop in to cards & they were well received. 

This year, it has been one of those times when it doesn't always go to plan & the thoughts don't translate to something you like. 

It was like that with my robins, I had high hopes for them & used a stencil I had ordered to cut around & for the wings. I just don't love them.

 I might have time to have another go, any suggestions to get me on my way with the robins?  

However, I saw some of the most beautiful green fabric at a local haberdashery shop I frequent & do courses at. I immediately knew it was right for some bauble decorations for cards. 

I drew the round shape on felt then cut out the whole circle in the fabric. I do like to add a bit of bead bling but not too much or the cards will be too bulky in the post. 

I did some trees on some with beads (they will be hand delivered) and then added some beads on the 'wave' of the pattern on others.  The fabric is just gorgeous as a bauble so they do not need too much I think to look charming. 

They were backed with a pale green felt & handstitched with a blanket stitch to finish them off. 

I recently bought these stitching markers (seen above) that you put your thumb in to get your stitches even & I thought it time to use them. They were tricky to use on curves & over beads but they do make you aware of keeping stitches more even. I will have another go on other things in time. 

I had a small fat quarter of special London landmarks fabric I bought from an ebay seller connected to the British Museum & I had it in my mind to do baubles for family with connections to specific parts of London. 

Cookie cutters are fabulous things for sewing & I used a large & medium elongated bauble shape to trace around for these. 

 Because the printed fabric was thin, I mistakenly thought once it was against the dark blue felt it would sew fine - it wasn't! 

The threads puckered & pulled & it had to be cut loose. I was annoyed at myself for cutting corners & not adding a fabric stabiliser. 

The first one had to be unpicked because I didn't have a second piece of fabric with the landmarks I needed. I ironed stabiliser on each shape, then backed it with blue felt before it was  resewn. It worked fine the second time.  I sewed a dark blue thin cord to the top of each one as it was machine stitched. I am pleased with the four I completed & they are special family gifts. 

I have seen several Instagram  sewers who do house shaped decorations, some working from a photo of your house. So original I thought ...  

 I had a thought to do one as a gift for a recent house move.  

I am not good at drawing buildings but did several pencil drawings until I was happy that it looked like their real house, traced over with a dark pen, then traced it on to white felt with a light box. 

The ones I had seen online are sewn free motion but my test one put paid to that idea & I did it with normal machine settings, needle in & turning at all the corners, windows etc. I handstitched in just a few details & made the name plate with the lettering on my Brother sewing machine. 

I am ok with the end result, it is another one of those things that looks so much easier when others do it but they have practised on hundreds of ones over time. 

A start with some festive sewing.  I do need to make a few more for friends I am meeting with in the next few weeks. 

Do you do anything that you send on with a card? Tell all ... Thank you for stopping by, it is always appreciated. 

Dee 🎄🕯️

Remembering the war poet Wilfred Owen

 

I blogged about South Africa's connection to the 2 minute silence held on Armistice day / Remembrance Sunday. It is accepted that it was initiated by Sir Percy FitzPatrick after the loss of his son. 

Another connection to South Africa is that of John Mccrae who penned the moving poem, In Flanders Fields.  He served as a medic in the Boer War of 1899-1902 in South Africa. 

One of the many famous names to have served for the British side - Churchill, Gandhi, Kipling, Conan Doyle, Lord Kitchener, Chamberlain, Baden Powell etc.

Some of the foreign supporters of the Boers included Count Zeppelin, Cornelius van Gogh (brother of Vincent), Piet Modrian's younger brother Frederik, Giuseppe Garibaldi's grandson Peppino etc. 

A war poet I have come to appreciate is Wilfred Owen because he is Shropshire born & commemorated in our county. His poetry is raw,  war is not celebrated like some other WW1 war poets speaking of 'the glorious dead' ethos of Robert Brooke etc. Owen's 'Anthem for Doomed Youth' says it as it was.

Wilfred Owen was born in 1893 in Oswestry, educated in Shrewsbury where he lived & studied afterwards. He enlisted in October 1915 & was sent out to France.  In 1917, he was injured by a trench mortar shell & treated in Edinburgh for injuries & for shell shock too. It was there that he met & was befriended by the celebrated war poet Siegfried Sassoon who read Owen's poems & encouraged him to write them down. 

Owen returned to the Western Front line in October 1918, he was killed on 4th November 1918, a week before the Armistice that ended the terrible war. His story is well documented, and his mother received the telegram of his death on Armistice day as the bells were ringing out over Shrewsbury. What feelings of despair she must have had with the war ending & him not coming back. 

I have studied his poetry with my older students & it does not try to gloss over the reality of war. 

This week, with Remembrance Sunday & Armistice Day just past, I visited our county town of Shrewsbury & stopped by The Abbey to view their magnificent poppy display. 

In the entrance to The Abbey, a board remembers the Shrewsbury fallen, amongst them Wilfred Owen, his name where the red poppy is on the right. 

I did not know of the memorial in the Abbey grounds but was directed there by Abbey helpers. It is appropriate that it shows how brief his life was, some of his words on the memorial in a setting he would have known as he taught at the nearby school. 

The futility of war brought in to focus again each year; the county & country making sure they are never forgotten. 

Thank you for stopping by & reading this account. Have you read any of his poetry or do you find war poetry a bit dark? 

Dee ⛪️🔔📚📓📖

Autumn beauty along the canals ...

Our county is blessed with the Shropshire Union Canal that gently crosses it at various points. It is one of my favourite pastimes to wander along these often hidden spaces that wind through some deep cuttings before passing houses, fields with animals or towns on their watery way. 

With the most beautiful Autumn colours deepening this year, I suggested a walk along a strip I have visited many times.

Tyrley Locks is a pretty walk along the canals where 5 locks drop or raise boats on their journey. 

What makes this walk special is the deep cutting with interesting rocks & soil that is exposed by digging out the canal. It was muddy underfoot because of some recent rain but our sturdy walking boots did well. 

The autumn colours did not disappoint with a thick carpet of leaves underfoot & more falling gently all the time on our walk. There is a sense of calm, of peace, of clearing your mind when out in nature. This is important time for me, to just be ...  

A very elegant grey heron appeared several times along the canals, staying on the side furthest from us while being cautious & curious. 

A passing canalboat was glad of the offer of help with the final lock so hubby helped with the lock gates to lower the boat on its way to Nantwich. 

We enjoyed a chat with the boating couple & their gorgeous dog. 

We had spent a week on a canal boat a few years ago with Ms M & her family so had an idea how to work the gates etc. 

On returning to the canal bridge at the basin by the top lock, I noticed a cottage for sale. However, the voice of reason did not join in my enthusiasm. 

I wonder what it would be like living right next to a canal & having a prime seat on canal life? 

Would it be cold in winter & busy in summer when boat hire is at its peak or would the fascination be the key to enjoying it? 

I won't know but it is nice to think about it. 

Thank you for stopping by, it is always appreciated.

Dee ⛴️🪾🌳🍁🍂